Lately I have truly learned the meaning of the phrase "The Circle of Life" and I'm not talking about the movie, The Lion King. I mean the point at which we become adults. Again, I don't mean the 18th birthday.
I have memories that make me feel like they starting point of my life. Sure, we all have vague recognition of memories from before that time due to hearing stories of our childhood repeatedly or seeing pictures but there is always one beginning place. I don't have a set age, per say but it seems like it all began when I was a small child. My grandmother must have been in her mid 60s which would put my mom at her mid to late 30s, maybe right around 40. This is the point where Grandma was completely 100% independent and could do most anything she wanted on her own - obviously within reason. Soon after, we began seeing Grandma slowly decline, fortunately all physical and nothing mental health wise. She suffered from arthritis and would eventually need hip and knee replacements. Any kind of surgery in that matter takes a major toll on your body. Life just doesn't seem as easy as it was. Things changed. Responsibilities changed.
Fast forward 30 years and change the cast members from that to now be my mom and myself. Life is completely different, but not necessarily bad. I find myself now helping and doing for mom as she did for Grandma for so many years. I have a memory of someone telling me that my mom promised my Grandpa Dison on his death bed that she would forever take care of Grandma. And let me just say, she did an absolutely amazing job.
Mom and I have often talked about all the days that she used to keep Noah for me in the afternoons. It was her way of being able to repay Grandma for all the days of letting me stay with her while mom worked. Mom was helping me in the very same ways that Grandma helped her. Now it is my turn. Was I necessarily ready to cross this bridge, no, not at all. Are we ever ready for something like this, no never! But do we have a choice - of course not!
I sat in an ER with my sweet momma a few weeks ago after she reinjured her back. It was during those hours of sitting, waiting, dwelling, pondering what life would now look like. How different it really must become. The point of the circle where the roles change and the child becomes the adult and the adult becomes the child. It was the (tough) reality that a lot of mom's independence has slowly disappeared. It was the reality of listening to her cry as she learned that she would have to make some hard life decisions. The reality of making everyday life living hard. The moments of the "quick run to the grocery store" is gone. The moments of sitting in the floor and letting her grandsons wrestle with her were gone. Even the enjoyable afternoons of walking the mall just for fun had vanished. Moments of needing help cleaning the bathtub had arrived. The simple task of sweeping the kitchen and the front porch would now require additional hands. Grocery shopping had become a 2 person task - one pushing the buggy while mom maneuvered a wheelchair. The financial comforts from a part time job may be gone because it would no longer be feasible to work the job. The anger that goes with it. The anger from the life changes of the past year -- the anger of realizing where responsibilities now fall. The
The circle that quickly changed directions when we were not even looking.
~Randi
Tuesday, December 22, 2015
Monday, September 29, 2014
Finding a new normal
One year ago this week my life changed in a drastic way. A situation that I never expected to go through, especially as an adult. I think as a child, I noticed several friends going through a similar situation and was very thankful that I knew I would not go through this. Now, going through it, I think it would have been easier going through it as a child. Unknowing to the truth and pain.
My world was rocked the day that I found out my parents would be getting a divorce. How in the world was I supposed to process this piece of information that would now consume my every day thoughts.
A loving marriage that I had watched for 33 years, one that I had looked to as an example for my own was shattered into a million pieces. How would we ever put the pieces back together. There would never be enough glue.
How in the world would life go forward with this. It did not make any sense in my head. Christmas would be different. Birthdays would be uncomfortable. Lunch and dinner outings would cease to exist. I was assured that life would go as normal and that my boys would know no difference.
Yet I doubted that statement, a year later my sweet children remain innocent to the truth. I am not saying, by any means that it has been an easy year. It is just by the grace of God that we have successfully made it through the first year of finding a new normal. There have been many many bad days but we have had successful days as well. It is very hard as an adult to see and understand the hurt and pain my parents are enduring. The days of tears. The days of having to face the truth to friends who are clueless. The days of putting on that mask of happy when you are truthfully crumbling on the inside. The days that you do not have a bandaid big enough to wrap your heart and keep it from hurting.
The night I found out the truth was one of the hardest days ever in my life. I was devastated. Crushed. Went to bed with tears flowing from my eyes. Woke with red puffy eyes, yet certain that I had just experienced a nightmare in my dream. Certain that it wasn't true, until I noticed the left over cup on the kitchen counter from Noah's outing with Ree Ree and Uncle Jamie that night before. Reality hit me that morning that it wasn't a nightmare. It was the truth. I had no choice but face this. It kind of felt like someone had died and I would be forced to go on with life without them.
Nothing that I could say or do could fix this situation. My hurt and my anger would not solve the problem. A helpless feeling with no choices!
I have prayed and prayed for God to heal this situation. Instead he has given me the strength and power to wake up each morning. He has given me the ears to listen as both of my parents speak to me. He has given me to words to say to people who are unknowing of the situation.
I have clung to the verse Keith and I have chosen as our family verse (as I have posted it here before)
Romans 9:17 "...I raised you up for this very purpose, that I might display my power in you and that my name might be proclaimed in all the earth."
God has brought us through every trial thus far and he will see us through this one as well. We will find a new normal. He will lead us and keep us from falling. When we feel like we are falling, he lifts us up. It is ok to have bad days. I pray that the bad days will be overseen by good days.
~Randi
My world was rocked the day that I found out my parents would be getting a divorce. How in the world was I supposed to process this piece of information that would now consume my every day thoughts.
A loving marriage that I had watched for 33 years, one that I had looked to as an example for my own was shattered into a million pieces. How would we ever put the pieces back together. There would never be enough glue.
How in the world would life go forward with this. It did not make any sense in my head. Christmas would be different. Birthdays would be uncomfortable. Lunch and dinner outings would cease to exist. I was assured that life would go as normal and that my boys would know no difference.
Yet I doubted that statement, a year later my sweet children remain innocent to the truth. I am not saying, by any means that it has been an easy year. It is just by the grace of God that we have successfully made it through the first year of finding a new normal. There have been many many bad days but we have had successful days as well. It is very hard as an adult to see and understand the hurt and pain my parents are enduring. The days of tears. The days of having to face the truth to friends who are clueless. The days of putting on that mask of happy when you are truthfully crumbling on the inside. The days that you do not have a bandaid big enough to wrap your heart and keep it from hurting.
The night I found out the truth was one of the hardest days ever in my life. I was devastated. Crushed. Went to bed with tears flowing from my eyes. Woke with red puffy eyes, yet certain that I had just experienced a nightmare in my dream. Certain that it wasn't true, until I noticed the left over cup on the kitchen counter from Noah's outing with Ree Ree and Uncle Jamie that night before. Reality hit me that morning that it wasn't a nightmare. It was the truth. I had no choice but face this. It kind of felt like someone had died and I would be forced to go on with life without them.
Nothing that I could say or do could fix this situation. My hurt and my anger would not solve the problem. A helpless feeling with no choices!
I have prayed and prayed for God to heal this situation. Instead he has given me the strength and power to wake up each morning. He has given me the ears to listen as both of my parents speak to me. He has given me to words to say to people who are unknowing of the situation.
I have clung to the verse Keith and I have chosen as our family verse (as I have posted it here before)
Romans 9:17 "...I raised you up for this very purpose, that I might display my power in you and that my name might be proclaimed in all the earth."
God has brought us through every trial thus far and he will see us through this one as well. We will find a new normal. He will lead us and keep us from falling. When we feel like we are falling, he lifts us up. It is ok to have bad days. I pray that the bad days will be overseen by good days.
~Randi
Tuesday, February 4, 2014
Letting Go
Boy have I become bad at the blogging thing. And sadly it is something I love to do and want to do. Well, just know that because I have not written it here does not mean I have not been writing. I have been. I have a journal that I started writing in back in the summer when we started going through something very personal. I wanted to write and remember my feelings so that I could use it one day so I have been going there to do my writing. It's not because I have something to hide or don't want to share it, I'm just not there yet.
If there is one thing through this storm that I have learned, we all have storms that we go through and hide from. I know that I am not the only one going through the same trials. People have been here before. But why do I choose to hide? Because I feel that I will be judged. I feel like if I hide, no one will know. No one will see. No one will know that I am crumbling on the inside. Instead, I put my big girl pants on and swallow to hide the pain. Truth be known, we all do that. We don't want everyone to know our biggest, darkest secrets. We feel as though there is a huge sign above our heads like a cartoon bubble or something that is blasting out our secrets. We try to run and hide from that.
I have felt a tugging at my heart lately that it may be time to share the story. I'm not sure exactly how to do that but I know that God will reveal that in HIS time. I feel that we have a story that God will do great things with, and I am clinging to that. One that we can help change lives with. I feel like I keep hiding from this but I read another blog today that said something to the effect of "if you keep hiding from it, how will anyone ever know your story or where you came from." I know that was not her exact wording in her blog but that is exactly what I needed from her post. So true. How can I hope and pray that God will use our experience(s) to help other lives if we are not willing to share our path.
Most of our "situations" revolve around a similar date of September 17th. That is the "dating anniversary" Keith and I always celebrated because that was our first date. A date very important to us in our first years together. Little did I know that date would mean so much more to us later. A friend told me that God may be using that date for a bible verse. I started looking up every 9:17 verse in the bible and Romans 9:17 was the verse for us! It says: "...I raised you up for this very purpose that I might display my power in you and that my name might be proclaimed in all the earth." There is was, a missing puzzle piece. This confirmed to me that I do need to let go of the fear of embarrassment, judgment, hate, anger, etc. etc. God has Keith and I going through storms so that HIS NAME would be proclaimed. Did I look at our situations of praise to God. Absolutely not! Many people do not praise his name during storms, sadly they do call out his name but not in praise! Many people question God through storms wondering why they go through the storms they do. Not gonna lie, I have asked MANY times why? But now I know, so that HIS NAME would be proclaimed.
It will be difficult to face the truth in the light but I am excited for what may come of it. Maybe ways of council to ones going through similar trials, maybe through writing (I really do love it) and maybe through public speaking one day. I don't know. That is up to God to decide. But I know one thing, we are ready. Ready to face whatever God has in store for us. I said that several years ago when we started new journeys with closing our businesses and starting fresh. I said that when we decided to open our homes to foreign exchange students, I just had no clue what God really had in store for us.
I am very thankful for all he has brought us through. He has helped us to discover love like no other. He has helped us to depend on each other when we didn't know what else to do. He has helped us to turn to him no matter what puddles or rivers we are walking through. He has blessed us with a beautiful little family that depends on us and that is exactly what we will do.
~Randi
Monday, March 25, 2013
Happy Birthday, Liam!!
I can not believe it has been almost 3 weeks since Liam came into our lives. How did we ever live without him. He is such a joy to have in our family.
Noah is such a good big brother. I will admit that I was nervous at first, giving how Noah had been acting the last few months, but he is doing so much better than I ever thought. He loves Liam more than anything. He loves to kiss on him, hold him, help change him and just watch him. I do get nervous over how much he does "love" Liam. I am constantly watching out for Liam's little head to make sure "Brudder" doesn't love on him too strongly.
It's amazing how you can go from looking like this ......
Noah is such a good big brother. I will admit that I was nervous at first, giving how Noah had been acting the last few months, but he is doing so much better than I ever thought. He loves Liam more than anything. He loves to kiss on him, hold him, help change him and just watch him. I do get nervous over how much he does "love" Liam. I am constantly watching out for Liam's little head to make sure "Brudder" doesn't love on him too strongly.
It's amazing how you can go from looking like this ......
to this ......
in just a matter of time. The preggo pic is me the Sunday before Liam came on Thursday. I was exactly 39 weeks pregnant in the picture.
Dr. Hoover agreed at my 38 week appointment to induce me on Thursday, March 7th. Having never been induced, I was unsure what to expect. She told me to report to the hospital on Wednesday evening at 5 pm. We convinced the family that there was no need in coming to the hospital that night. Keith and I looked forward to starting the process that night and then a good night of rest. Boy was I wrong! Gigi and Granddanny came and picked me, Noah and Maggie up and took us to UAB to meet Daddy. He got off at 4 so we had plenty of time to grab a sandwich at McAlisters before heading up to Labor and Delivery. Dr told me to eat a light dinner and that is just what I enjoyed (with a huge glass of sweet tea!!)
We got into our labor room (LDR 8) about 6p. The lovely hospital paper work, doctors talking to us and iv sticking began. The nurses changed to night shift at 8p so nothing else really started until after shift change. I had the sweetest night nurse that night to help take care of us. I wish I remembered her name but she was very young (apparently all of my nurses were super young ... they were all younger than me!!) She and the on call doctor came in about 8:30 to start the process. They put in some kind of catheter (not the real kind) to try to make you naturally dilate more without medication. At the time of arrival, I was 1 cm dilated. The procedure that they did was more painful than the actual delivery part. Mental note: if I ever do this again and they induce, ask for pain meds BEFORE the procedure!!! Oh my word. And it didn't help that she had to do it 2 or 3 times (I lost count) because the placenta was tilted. Who knew?
After the painful procedure, we were set the for night. I got to enjoy my tea until midnight then it was ice chips only. Keith went right on to sleep while I stayed up texting with my momma and the staff wives. Thank goodness for group text! Texting lasted until almost 11:30 when we all decided that we must get rest - after all, I had a BIG day ahead of me and needed rest. But I could not sleep. My mind would not shut down. I was excited, anxious and nervous all at the same time. I missed my little buddy more than anything. Keith's cell phone rang about 2 am with a phone call from Gigi. I instantly had a panic moment wondering what was wrong with Noah. Well, it wasn't Noah. It was Maggie. She was having a breathing attack and Gigi wasn't sure what to do. Once she settled down we headed back to sleep. Ha - yeah right!
The night slowly crept by. My nurse came in at 5 am and helped me take a shower and they started my iv of pitocin at 6a. Overnight I had dilated 2 more cm. Shift change happened a little earlier than 8a but I had a precious nurse again. How funny is it that my actually LDR nurser lives about 5 minutes from us - in Corner!! We know a lot of the same people and it made for a fun and easy day! Epidural came about 8 am when my contractions really began to pick up. The epidural had to be done twice because the first one when into the wrong place. Nothing like 2 big sticks in the back in between tough contractions. And of course they make the hubby leave during this part.
Family began to trickle in about 9:30. Pain eased up but I got to where I didn't feel too good. Liam's heart beat was a little higher than everyone wanted it to be. Once my water had been broken, Dr. Hoover realized that Liam had pooped. She was a little concerned and wanted to have Peds in the delivery room just to make sure things were good.
Waves of nausea passed by me, tried to sleep, couldn't sleep. It felt like we had been going at this for at least 24 hours and it really had only been about 3-4 hours. Dad had to work that morning but planned to leave work at noon. We realized things were progressing a little faster than expected and so Dad left Riverside at 11:30. He made it to UAB in record time - by 12:30. I was at 10 cm and ready to push about 12:15 but Dr. Hoover said we could wait a few minutes to give Dad time to get there to see us before. What a blessing she was. In the mean time, she went out to check on Noah and played with him and his monster trucks for a few minutes. Papaw made it just in time to kiss me before it was time to start pushing.
Pushing lasted through 9 contractions - 25 minutes - and Liam was here at 12:54 pm. When he came out the cord was wrapped around his neck 2 times. Talk about scaring his mommy and daddy (and doctor!) Fortunately everything was fine but that was the reason for the elevated heart rate during the contractions. Fortunately we had a huge team of pediatrician in the delivery room and they were right on making sure he was ok, which he was. He actually was better off than Noah was when he was born.
Littlest Man weighed in at 7 lbs 11 oz and was 20 1/2 inches long. I call him my little "odd baby" because his birthday is 03-07-13 and he was 7 - 11. HAHA! He looked just like Noah only he has a head full of dark hair! So opposite from the rest of us!
Our new little family of 4
Mommy, Noah and Liam
Little BB - ready to go home on Saturday
Brothers - waiting on our discharge from the hospital
Noah and Liam on Friday, March 22nd at Gigi's house
Liam is 2 weeks and 1 day old
Everything was perfect. I could not ask for a better delivery story, team of nurses or a better doctor. I absolutely love my new OB and don't see me changing any time soon, unless she goes somewhere else. The care at UAB was wonderful, the security measures are impressive and they get high stars in my book.
God blessed us yet again with another precious baby boy. He is perfect in every way. He is eating good and sleeping good. He reacts well when he hears his brother. We could not be any more happier with our little blessing.
~Randi
Tuesday, March 5, 2013
First Trip To Children's Hospital
I am WAY over due on typing this post (since it happened 2 months ago yesterday!) but I feel that it is a worthy blog post. We experienced not only our first Children's Hospital ER trip but our first middle of the night ER trip with Noah. I think making it almost 4 years is a pretty good record!
It was a Thursday night/Friday morning when Noah woke us up crying. It was not very late, maybe only 12:30 or 1 am. Keith actually woke first hearing Noah crying. I was obviously good and asleep that I didn't even hear him. Normally I am the one that hears him first. Keith walked in his room to Noah sitting on the floor crying. Noah mentioned that his head was "wet" so Keith felt the back of his head and knew instantly what he would find (it was obviously pitch black dark in there.) He picked him up and brought him to his room yelling that Noah was bleeding and to wake up. Talk about a bad way to wake up!!! We quickly realized the entire back of Noah's head was wet with blood. We couldn't quite see how bad the cut was but we knew we needed to head to the hospital either way. It's scary with head injuries because you never know how bad they could be. What could appear minor could be life changing and vise versa - what appears life changing may be nothing. We were not sure what to expect. The only thing we figure is he
We calmed Noah best we could as we both got ready to head out. We did not realize how cold it was outside (haha) and just about took Noah to the Jeep in his pjs and no socks. I don't even know if he had his jacket at the time. It also didn't help that I was applying pressure with a wet towel to the wound.
We quickly headed out best we could. Instantly called Papaw (my dad) to make sure we were doing what we needed to do. Papaw is the police officer/former medic in the family so he gets all of the medical calls. We said we were doing everything fine, slow down, take our time getting to the hospital. It was not worth a risk of having an accident to make things worse. He had just taken something to help him sleep and he had to be at work early the next day. He said what I figured he would say and that was Nina was on her way to meet us.
We called Gigi and Granddanny to let them know where we were headed. We laugh now but they originally thought we were headed to the hospital for me and Baby Liam. We didn't know that THAT phone call would come just a couple of weeks later - LOL! They told us to keep them posted on what was going on but they kept checking in with us because neither of them could obviously go back to sleep.
I was dreading a full waiting room and hours of just sitting with Noah and a bleeding head. Keith kept prompting me to talk about how bad his head injury was so that they would take us back immediately. I kept thinking they would notice it with all of the blood! Keith dropped Noah and I off at the front door of the ER and I was shocked to find not one person waiting in the ER waiting room. I have no clue how we got that fortunate!! When I questioned it the nurses even told me to "SHHHH" (laughing of course!) They never have nights like that. So, we were taken immediately back and examined.
The sweet triage nurse too his vitals, looked at the wound and assured us it was not as bad as we thought but would require a few stitches. She bandaged his little head and sent us back to an actual room. This is where the waiting came!! We didn't realize at the time that the waiting was to help a deadening medication sink into the wound so they could stitch him. It's the little things you obviously don't think about.
After waiting a long while, the doctor came in to see us. He assured us the same as the triage nurse but didn't think the medication had worked on his head. It had fortunately stopped bleeding so he could actually see the wound. He had the nurse apply another round of medication to the head and we waited some more. We knew we did not want them to have to inject a shot in his head to deaden it.
Let me just say that I was not prepared for the stitches part. Hearing Noah scream was the worst ever! It was worse then when he broke his arm!!! They had to put him in this blue papoose thing that pretty much restrained him. Houdini figured out how to wiggle his arms out go figure. A male nurse walking down the hall heard the screams and came to back up. He pretty much laid across Noah (without hurting him obviously) to help hold him down. This preggo mommy held it together but MAN!! I think it did freak the nurse a little when she figured out I was almost 31 weeks pregnant.
We received 3 stitches in our head with instruction to follow up in 5-7 days with our pediatrician to have them removed. It was a rough week of keeping his head clean and dry but we managed!
We got back home about 5:30 am and we were beyond exhausted. Keith and Noah both took naps but I was wired. I did not let Noah out of my sight at all that day!
We had tickets to Monster Jam that night and we were so excited to go but questioned if it was still a good idea. Poor baby was so excited about it also so we decided to give it a try but let him make the call when he was ready to go. We made it just passed intermission when he said "I'm ready to go home. I've seen enough." He was beyond being a trooper! I was bummed we missed the best part of the show but I did not and could not push him to stay! Our Monster Jam experience did bring out a new phase in Noah. Now we own almost 20 monster trucks and we have several recorded on the DVR and he acts out Monster Jam with his own trucks. He even swapped his birthday party to Monster Jam.
We obviously have a few iPhone pics from our hospital experience. We couldn't let his experience pass down.
It was a Thursday night/Friday morning when Noah woke us up crying. It was not very late, maybe only 12:30 or 1 am. Keith actually woke first hearing Noah crying. I was obviously good and asleep that I didn't even hear him. Normally I am the one that hears him first. Keith walked in his room to Noah sitting on the floor crying. Noah mentioned that his head was "wet" so Keith felt the back of his head and knew instantly what he would find (it was obviously pitch black dark in there.) He picked him up and brought him to his room yelling that Noah was bleeding and to wake up. Talk about a bad way to wake up!!! We quickly realized the entire back of Noah's head was wet with blood. We couldn't quite see how bad the cut was but we knew we needed to head to the hospital either way. It's scary with head injuries because you never know how bad they could be. What could appear minor could be life changing and vise versa - what appears life changing may be nothing. We were not sure what to expect. The only thing we figure is he
We calmed Noah best we could as we both got ready to head out. We did not realize how cold it was outside (haha) and just about took Noah to the Jeep in his pjs and no socks. I don't even know if he had his jacket at the time. It also didn't help that I was applying pressure with a wet towel to the wound.
We quickly headed out best we could. Instantly called Papaw (my dad) to make sure we were doing what we needed to do. Papaw is the police officer/former medic in the family so he gets all of the medical calls. We said we were doing everything fine, slow down, take our time getting to the hospital. It was not worth a risk of having an accident to make things worse. He had just taken something to help him sleep and he had to be at work early the next day. He said what I figured he would say and that was Nina was on her way to meet us.
We called Gigi and Granddanny to let them know where we were headed. We laugh now but they originally thought we were headed to the hospital for me and Baby Liam. We didn't know that THAT phone call would come just a couple of weeks later - LOL! They told us to keep them posted on what was going on but they kept checking in with us because neither of them could obviously go back to sleep.
I was dreading a full waiting room and hours of just sitting with Noah and a bleeding head. Keith kept prompting me to talk about how bad his head injury was so that they would take us back immediately. I kept thinking they would notice it with all of the blood! Keith dropped Noah and I off at the front door of the ER and I was shocked to find not one person waiting in the ER waiting room. I have no clue how we got that fortunate!! When I questioned it the nurses even told me to "SHHHH" (laughing of course!) They never have nights like that. So, we were taken immediately back and examined.
The sweet triage nurse too his vitals, looked at the wound and assured us it was not as bad as we thought but would require a few stitches. She bandaged his little head and sent us back to an actual room. This is where the waiting came!! We didn't realize at the time that the waiting was to help a deadening medication sink into the wound so they could stitch him. It's the little things you obviously don't think about.
After waiting a long while, the doctor came in to see us. He assured us the same as the triage nurse but didn't think the medication had worked on his head. It had fortunately stopped bleeding so he could actually see the wound. He had the nurse apply another round of medication to the head and we waited some more. We knew we did not want them to have to inject a shot in his head to deaden it.
Let me just say that I was not prepared for the stitches part. Hearing Noah scream was the worst ever! It was worse then when he broke his arm!!! They had to put him in this blue papoose thing that pretty much restrained him. Houdini figured out how to wiggle his arms out go figure. A male nurse walking down the hall heard the screams and came to back up. He pretty much laid across Noah (without hurting him obviously) to help hold him down. This preggo mommy held it together but MAN!! I think it did freak the nurse a little when she figured out I was almost 31 weeks pregnant.
We received 3 stitches in our head with instruction to follow up in 5-7 days with our pediatrician to have them removed. It was a rough week of keeping his head clean and dry but we managed!
We got back home about 5:30 am and we were beyond exhausted. Keith and Noah both took naps but I was wired. I did not let Noah out of my sight at all that day!
We had tickets to Monster Jam that night and we were so excited to go but questioned if it was still a good idea. Poor baby was so excited about it also so we decided to give it a try but let him make the call when he was ready to go. We made it just passed intermission when he said "I'm ready to go home. I've seen enough." He was beyond being a trooper! I was bummed we missed the best part of the show but I did not and could not push him to stay! Our Monster Jam experience did bring out a new phase in Noah. Now we own almost 20 monster trucks and we have several recorded on the DVR and he acts out Monster Jam with his own trucks. He even swapped his birthday party to Monster Jam.
We obviously have a few iPhone pics from our hospital experience. We couldn't let his experience pass down.
In triage getting our vitals and a little hospital gown
We called this our 'Superman" headband - with medication
The horrible blue board! Noah will not forget this board!!
Post stitches. Saline was used to flush the wound which made his hair look worse!
Can I say how bad his head smelled for a couple of days. The smell of blood reeks!!
Noah and Jake at Monster Jam. He was such a trooper in his cute monster truck shirt Mrs. Kim made.
He was also proudly wearing Papaw's headphones. (Looks like we will be asking Santa for a set this year!!)
You know, you always try to find a positive out of every situation - the ONLY positive we have found for our ER trip is the threat of the blue board. If Noah is doing something that might hurt him, we remind him of the blue board at the hospital and he stops what he is doing. Bless his heart, blood does freak him out now (guessing he won't be a doctor now!). Every time he hurts something, even as simple as stumping his toe or even cutting a hang nail from his finger, he freaks thinking he will have to go to the hospital if it bleeds. His exact words is "my bleeding stuff". Goodness! I wished I could take the pain for my baby but knew I couldn't.
Thursday, February 28, 2013
Happy Birthday, Buddy!!!
I can not believe it has been 4 years since my favorite little buddy entered our world. I had no clue what a joy he would bring to us.
We celebrated his birthday party on February 16th with family and friends. I know I was nervous about his party but everything turned out perfect. It was too cold for the moonwalk (which Noah and I were both disappointed with) but we had a great time anyway! Ree Ree made a "tire" cake for us and Aunt Jonica helped ice it and decorate it up some. Ree Ree also made small "tires" for each of Noah's friends to decorate their own. Keith and Uncle Shane attempted to make cotton candy. It tasted wonderful but I think the dog next door enjoyed a majority of it because of the wind. It was funny watching the little beagle chase it through the yard. HAHA!!
Noah got lots of wonderful gifts and fun new toys. His favorites include the bow and arrow from Nina and Papaw (thanks, mom!!) and the dvd player for the car from Gigi and Granddanny. Boy, do his grandparents know him or what. We do joke on the bow and arrow. He is great at it - has a natural stance and all. It just took some talking to on where we point and where we do not point the arrow. I will say - the arrow is not an arrow. It is a suction cup, but still. Gotta learn now for the real one one day! He loves it because he says he is going "Squatch" hunting -- his Daddy is so proud!!!
Blowing out the "Tire"
HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO YOU...
Attempting at the Cotton Candy
Decorating the tires
Even "Mr. Keith" sat with the kids to decorate a tire
Aunt J and Ree Ree ROCK!!!
Lunch with his friends!
Opening Presents
More presents - with help from friends!!
Noah's actual birthday was this past Sunday and of course it was spent at church. What a better place to celebrate his birthday! We did go to lunch afterwards and let the birthday boy choose. Big shock - he wanted chips and cheese. We headed to the Mexican restaurant and Mommy took one for the team. I thoroughly enjoyed my Mexican lunch - especially since it had been over a month since I had eaten anything like that! I figured it would either send me into labor or a gall bladder attack. I was hoping for the 1st one but got nothing! HAHA!!
The afternoon ended up being absolutely beautiful!! Aunt Audrey sent Noah a John Deer tractor with "monster truck tires" so we headed outside to play. He had a blast playing in the mud. He was SO filthy when we finished that we threw his new socks away. They looked like they had soaked in chocolate milk. His jeans, shirt and shoes went straight to the washer. I even had to wash the washing machine before I could wash the next load. We stripped Noah of his clothes on the back deck and Keith literally carried him straight to the tub. He was filthy even under his clothes. But my Buddy had a blast and I let him enjoy!!
And while this post is all about Noah -- today is pajama party day at school. They are studying the letter "P" at school so they wore their pjs today, enjoyed popcorn, (caffeine free) pepsi, pudding, and watched Peter Pan. He even got to take Bo and Mickey with him to school. Needless to say, he was very excited about going to school this morning!! I know he will have a blast at naptime!
Noah's "bestie" is Michael and he is in the blue plaid.
Jonah is a close 2nd and he is in the red angry birds.
I know they have so much fun at school!!!
God certainly blessed our lives when Noah entered the world on February 24th, 2009. I look forward to many more years of fun and excitement with my Little Buddy. It's only going to get better!!!
Friday, February 15, 2013
Just a downer day
I feel like "Debbie Downer" today. Am I allowed to do that? I would say yes but not just because I am 9 month pregnant. I think we are ALL allowed downer days. I normally do not use nor like to use my blog as a venting place but I felt like today would be a good day to actually put my feelings and emotions out in writing. Again - I don't do that often enough either. I wish I did.
Today is Friday, February 15th. It is the date of birth of a very special man in my life. My Granddaddy. I would love nothing more for Liam to grace us with his presence today. But I've given up on that wish - especially since it is 2p already. Something drastic would have to happen quick. (Then the other side of me is not quite prepared like I would like and so that would not be good either!!) This is a day that I think about my Granddaddy for mainly the entire day. My Granddaddy was always my main man, besides my Daddy, of course. We loved to fish together, go on trips, go to the movies and just about anywhere we felt like going! It was a very hard day when he died almost 11 years ago. I wasn't quite sure how we were to continue on with life without him. It almost seems unfair to go on. And I would give ANYTHING for him to know my boys!!
Tomorrow is Noah's birthday party and I feel like a slacker momma. (Poor Baby!!) His birthday is not until the 24th of this month but I decided it was best to have his party early because of Liam. Now I am wishing I had waited until after Liam. And let me just say -- for the record -- it absolutely stinks to work for an inflatable company and not be able to use an inflatable for your son's birthday all because it is too cold outside! UGH!! I started planning Noah's party in September - yes, 5 months ago. He wanted a Mickey Mouse Clubhouse party. I tried to discourage since we had already had one but there was no changing his mind. So I looked and pinned on Pintrest and marked as favorites in Etsy and just about had my game plan down. We were able to get free tickets to the Birmingham Monster Jam show in January so we took Noah. Little did I know that it would start a new phase with us. He absolutely loved it!! And in just 5 weeks, our monster truck collection has grown from 2 trucks to 12! He is obsessed - literally!! Needless to say, his party has changed to Monster Jam. (Not to be confused with just Monster Trucks in general -- it must be Monster Jam!! Grave Digger and all!!) So I went back to the drawing board. Pinning and "Favorite-ing" Monster Jam birthday ideas. Then I got sick! Blah!! It just went downhill from there. I feel like his little party has been thrown together, nothing executed as this planner momma had visioned. I told myself that it wouldn't matter because we still had the moonwalk -- that is until the weather people reported an "Arctic blast" of cold air for February 16th. There was even talk of the "S" word but I think it is extreme North Alabama. So, we had to cancel the moonwalk and now it will just be a party in the house I guess. Nothing special. Nothing fancy. I am very thankful for a huge playroom downstairs because I guess that's where the kids will play. As of Tuesday morning I had no clue what I was even going to do for a cake for his party. (Seriously, slacker momma here!!) Aunt Jonica and Ree Ree both offered to help wherever they could. Aunt J has been really sick so I was afraid to ask her - honestly! Ree Ree offered to make cupcakes for us just after I decided to do little chocolate bunt cakes as "big tires". The kids will each get to decorate their own tire. I think it will be a fun activity for the little ones. It will end up being a good party, I have no doubt. Just hate it when my plan doesn't follow through.
So what am I doing now? I am looking at Pintrest and Etsy and planning Noah and Liam's birthdays. I HAVE to make up to Noah next year for his big 5th birthday and it will be Liam's 1st. They must be done correctly! (Yes, I think it is an illness that I have. HAHA!) I've convinced Noah to have an airplane birthday and we will have his party at the Southern Museum of Flight. Noah and I decided that Liam needs a Very Hungry Caterpillar birthday. By the way, there is some super precious Hungry Caterpillar birthday stuff out there. I think I do need to start planning now and start buying now! HAHA!!!
I think I have vented enough for one day. I'm gonna cheer up, finish out this work day and go meet my boys for dinner and birthday party shopping.
~Randi
Today is Friday, February 15th. It is the date of birth of a very special man in my life. My Granddaddy. I would love nothing more for Liam to grace us with his presence today. But I've given up on that wish - especially since it is 2p already. Something drastic would have to happen quick. (Then the other side of me is not quite prepared like I would like and so that would not be good either!!) This is a day that I think about my Granddaddy for mainly the entire day. My Granddaddy was always my main man, besides my Daddy, of course. We loved to fish together, go on trips, go to the movies and just about anywhere we felt like going! It was a very hard day when he died almost 11 years ago. I wasn't quite sure how we were to continue on with life without him. It almost seems unfair to go on. And I would give ANYTHING for him to know my boys!!
Tomorrow is Noah's birthday party and I feel like a slacker momma. (Poor Baby!!) His birthday is not until the 24th of this month but I decided it was best to have his party early because of Liam. Now I am wishing I had waited until after Liam. And let me just say -- for the record -- it absolutely stinks to work for an inflatable company and not be able to use an inflatable for your son's birthday all because it is too cold outside! UGH!! I started planning Noah's party in September - yes, 5 months ago. He wanted a Mickey Mouse Clubhouse party. I tried to discourage since we had already had one but there was no changing his mind. So I looked and pinned on Pintrest and marked as favorites in Etsy and just about had my game plan down. We were able to get free tickets to the Birmingham Monster Jam show in January so we took Noah. Little did I know that it would start a new phase with us. He absolutely loved it!! And in just 5 weeks, our monster truck collection has grown from 2 trucks to 12! He is obsessed - literally!! Needless to say, his party has changed to Monster Jam. (Not to be confused with just Monster Trucks in general -- it must be Monster Jam!! Grave Digger and all!!) So I went back to the drawing board. Pinning and "Favorite-ing" Monster Jam birthday ideas. Then I got sick! Blah!! It just went downhill from there. I feel like his little party has been thrown together, nothing executed as this planner momma had visioned. I told myself that it wouldn't matter because we still had the moonwalk -- that is until the weather people reported an "Arctic blast" of cold air for February 16th. There was even talk of the "S" word but I think it is extreme North Alabama. So, we had to cancel the moonwalk and now it will just be a party in the house I guess. Nothing special. Nothing fancy. I am very thankful for a huge playroom downstairs because I guess that's where the kids will play. As of Tuesday morning I had no clue what I was even going to do for a cake for his party. (Seriously, slacker momma here!!) Aunt Jonica and Ree Ree both offered to help wherever they could. Aunt J has been really sick so I was afraid to ask her - honestly! Ree Ree offered to make cupcakes for us just after I decided to do little chocolate bunt cakes as "big tires". The kids will each get to decorate their own tire. I think it will be a fun activity for the little ones. It will end up being a good party, I have no doubt. Just hate it when my plan doesn't follow through.
So what am I doing now? I am looking at Pintrest and Etsy and planning Noah and Liam's birthdays. I HAVE to make up to Noah next year for his big 5th birthday and it will be Liam's 1st. They must be done correctly! (Yes, I think it is an illness that I have. HAHA!) I've convinced Noah to have an airplane birthday and we will have his party at the Southern Museum of Flight. Noah and I decided that Liam needs a Very Hungry Caterpillar birthday. By the way, there is some super precious Hungry Caterpillar birthday stuff out there. I think I do need to start planning now and start buying now! HAHA!!!
I think I have vented enough for one day. I'm gonna cheer up, finish out this work day and go meet my boys for dinner and birthday party shopping.
~Randi
Monday, February 4, 2013
The Story of Liam - as it continues to grow
My doctor asked me last week how my pregnancy with Noah went. My response - FLAWLESS. Then she asked, "Was he a good baby?" My response - YES! She said, "Darn, I was hoping you would have issues now and then have a good baby also." Yes, that means, I can not seem to win with this pregnancy with Liam. He has thrown me curve balls the entire time.
As I mentioned in the previous post (which was forever ago!!) Liam was quite a surprise for us. We were trying to get pregnant but were having some issues. Let me rephrase - I was having some issues. My body would not cooperate and do what it needed to do for the pregnancy to be an option. We tried for month - help from the doctor to regulate things. May/June was our last month to try to regulate before a more drastic measure would be taken. It was beginning to get frustrating, I was discouraged and began to wonder if Noah might be an only child. The thought scared and upset me but I knew I would be happy with my little buddy. My disappointment came more for him.
The end of June came and my body still had not done what it needed to do. More frustration came. The nurse gave me one more dose of medicine to trigger things with the instructions to call for an appointment with the doctor. I was already upset because 6 months before I found out I was having thyroid issues (which is common in women) and knew that could be one cause of issue. Then reality hit that I was getting older and things weren't as "easy" as they used to be. Yes, it is hard to admit that! I've always been the baby - and now I'm the old one having issues! UGH!! Back to the story - so I took the final round of medicine and waited patiently. Nothing happened. The day Keith and I were to leave for Kid's Camp (for my first trip ever) I noticed I had a pain that seemed all too familiar. I took a pregnancy test and was SO excited to see a little "+" sign. I asked Keith if that is what I think it is and he agreed to my findings. He told me not to get too excited that we should call the nurse. She told me the same thing Keith said: "Don't get too excited yet. Could be false positive from the medicine." I told her I had no clue how it could be positive since my body did not do what it needed to do - so I thought. I'm still puzzled.
So mum was the word. Couldn't tell anyone. I went to the Dr the next week for blood work. Received a phone call the next day -- I was excited to answer the phone. Not so much. The nurse told me that I was in fact pregnant but my numbers were very low and that was not a good thing. She phoned in a prescription of progesterone that I was to take immediately that evening and again the next morning and come in that afternoon for more blood work. My numbers needed to double by the next afternoon. I was crushed. I called Keith in tears completely unsure what to think. I cried out saying "I want to tell my mom!!" Why is it - a girl always needs her momma - no matter HOW old she is!!! He agreed and we decided to tell just our immediate family and the church staff what was going on. We felt our little bean needed all the prayers we could get. We needed him to stick! I cried on my mom's shoulder that night and she assured me that we would get through it no matter what. God had a plan and HE was in control. Our sisters each seemed to already know that we were pregnant - how they do that, I have NO idea!!
The blood work the next day was encouraging but not as we had hoped. It was higher which was definitely a good thing but had not quite doubled. This meant that I would be on the progesterone twice a day every day for the first 12 weeks and I had to have my blood taken every week. It was a long 12 weeks but definitely worth it. The lab girls at the dr office are wonderful!!
Everything seemed to truck right along. At the 12 week mark, the nurse went to hear the heartbeat and couldn't find it. Talk about another freak out moment. I headed to ultrasound and she found him tucked really high just fluttering right along. And trust me - he has been there the WHOLE time! I swear he is kicked back on my ribs!!! HAHA!
At 20 weeks we headed back to ultrasound for measurements and gender reveal if we wanted. We had the tech write it down and we hosted a gender reveal party for our family and close friends. That's when we found out Robert Liam would be joining our family. Noah was so excited. I admit, I was convinced he was a girl because he had been dealing me fits so much!
The 24 week appointment came and it was time for the dreaded sugar test. Yep - failed it the week of Thanksgiving. Trust me, I enjoyed every bite at Thanksgiving dinner because I knew I had a 3 hour test ahead of me and the results of that test may tell me I couldn't eat anything that we enjoyed at Thanksgiving. Needless to say, I passed my test and could carry on.
Christmas came and I started my every 2 week appointments. I could not believe we were already to this point. We had just moved to Corner in December and everything was hectic to say the least. I sat in my appoint on Jan 3rd and told Dr. Kennedy that I had a feeling I would not make it all the way to March 11th. She said that I was measuring a week ahead and he was already head down. Needless to say - I freaked because we had not even put up the crib yet. (We JUST did this weekend. HAHA!) She told me I better get to work. 2 weeks later I was headed to my appointment and cancelled on the way because Birmingham was having a small snowstorm. It was horrible trying to drive and quite honestly, I didn't want to have a wreck and have to go to the hospital in snow and ice. I rescheduled my appointment for the following Monday afternoon.
The weather was cleared the next day and everything was back to normal. Saturday was mom's bday so we headed to Trussville for a bday party for one of Noah's friends then to lunch with Mom and Rinda. We enjoyed dinner with Gigi and GrandDanny before loading back up to head North to Corner.
Sunday was a typical day for us. Church that morning then we grabbed lunch and did our weekly grocery trip. Nap time came and it was wonderful! As it was time to get ready for church, I started having a pain in my back that felt like it was coming through to a spot between my ribs. I don't think I had ever been in so much pain. Seriously! I tried to make it at church but it didn't happen. I started feeling nauseated and light headed. I sat in the room with Keith and called the on call doctor. He told me it was probably a muscle spasm and how I could relieve the pressure. Nothing worked. I told Keith something wasn't right and I felt we needed to head to Brookwood. We called parents on the way. Let me just say - they ALL beat us to the hospital. LOL! Disadvantage for living 45 minutes from hospital! They had a wheelchair waiting when we pulled up and had me registered with the nurse. Advantage to parents beating us to hospital! We weren't there long before the nurse told me I was having contractions and my bp was raised. It wasn't long after that I started throwing up. I cried because Keith and Mom saw me get sick. The nurse came in and became my best friend with the medicine she put in my iv. It was obvious we were not going anywhere that night. The on call Dr came and evaluated. He still thought muscle spasm but said my OB would probably order a gallbladder ultrasound the next day.
I slept off and on pretty much all night - thanks to the wonderful medicine. Poor Keith did not. Dr. Kennedy came in that morning to check on me. She told me the sad news that I couldn't eat or drink anything ALL day and that I would have to go to radiology for the ultrasound. I was upset to find out that my gallbladder has "too many gallstones to count". That can't be good! The nurses all told me that gallbladder surgery can be done while pregnant. That thought freaked me out! Dr. K sent a surgeon in to check on me. He told me that I am too far along and Liam is too high (as he has been the WHOLE time) for them to do anything now. The good news is that my gallbladder is not infected so there is no rush to get it out at this time. Liam can keep cooking. Bad news is that I am on a very limited very strict diet here on out. No fat/lowest fat diet - ie: lots of grilled/baked chicken or fish. No dairy (which is a big killer for me), no creams, cheese, coffee, carbonated drinks, fried foods, etc. As Dr. Littleton said, if it tastes good, I can't eat it.
This also means that Liam is in no danger, he did not cause the gallbladder issues though pregnancy can contribute to inflammation. I was discharged on Tuesday with instructions to rest and recover, a prescription of pain pills in case I get into trouble and to call Dr. Littleton after I deliver to set up surgery to have it removed 2-6 weeks after Liam is born. How lovely is that - 2 recoveries ahead of me. Double time for Keith to be off from his new job. Nice!!
It's been 2 weeks since all of that happened and as of last Tuesday I was already down 5 lbs. I'm trying to find a bright side to this ordeal. The end is not in sight for us - I guess that is a very good thing. Just means momma is miserable. Liam is still has high as he can be but I have not even started the progression part. My bp was raised last week at the dr office but it came down before I left so nothing to worry with right now. We will go as long as we can and won't start talking about induction until 38/39 weeks unless we start having issues. I am 35 weeks today so I still have a little while to go! My belly has gotten much larger and I am having contractions already but nothing consistent. Life must carry on at this point.
Keith started a new job today and Noah started his new school last week. The baby bed and changing table have been set up. Waiting on the bedding to arrive, washing clothes and getting organized is what is going on now. The ladies at our church gave me a tea yesterday and I was more than thrilled with everything. Liam received lots of amazing things and I was so honored. God has brought us to an amazing place at Highpoint. I still feel like I am dreaming that we are here with them. As Keith keeps reminding me - all of this is just another chapter in our book. I'm just anxious for the chapter on Liam's birthday!
~Randi
As I mentioned in the previous post (which was forever ago!!) Liam was quite a surprise for us. We were trying to get pregnant but were having some issues. Let me rephrase - I was having some issues. My body would not cooperate and do what it needed to do for the pregnancy to be an option. We tried for month - help from the doctor to regulate things. May/June was our last month to try to regulate before a more drastic measure would be taken. It was beginning to get frustrating, I was discouraged and began to wonder if Noah might be an only child. The thought scared and upset me but I knew I would be happy with my little buddy. My disappointment came more for him.
The end of June came and my body still had not done what it needed to do. More frustration came. The nurse gave me one more dose of medicine to trigger things with the instructions to call for an appointment with the doctor. I was already upset because 6 months before I found out I was having thyroid issues (which is common in women) and knew that could be one cause of issue. Then reality hit that I was getting older and things weren't as "easy" as they used to be. Yes, it is hard to admit that! I've always been the baby - and now I'm the old one having issues! UGH!! Back to the story - so I took the final round of medicine and waited patiently. Nothing happened. The day Keith and I were to leave for Kid's Camp (for my first trip ever) I noticed I had a pain that seemed all too familiar. I took a pregnancy test and was SO excited to see a little "+" sign. I asked Keith if that is what I think it is and he agreed to my findings. He told me not to get too excited that we should call the nurse. She told me the same thing Keith said: "Don't get too excited yet. Could be false positive from the medicine." I told her I had no clue how it could be positive since my body did not do what it needed to do - so I thought. I'm still puzzled.
So mum was the word. Couldn't tell anyone. I went to the Dr the next week for blood work. Received a phone call the next day -- I was excited to answer the phone. Not so much. The nurse told me that I was in fact pregnant but my numbers were very low and that was not a good thing. She phoned in a prescription of progesterone that I was to take immediately that evening and again the next morning and come in that afternoon for more blood work. My numbers needed to double by the next afternoon. I was crushed. I called Keith in tears completely unsure what to think. I cried out saying "I want to tell my mom!!" Why is it - a girl always needs her momma - no matter HOW old she is!!! He agreed and we decided to tell just our immediate family and the church staff what was going on. We felt our little bean needed all the prayers we could get. We needed him to stick! I cried on my mom's shoulder that night and she assured me that we would get through it no matter what. God had a plan and HE was in control. Our sisters each seemed to already know that we were pregnant - how they do that, I have NO idea!!
The blood work the next day was encouraging but not as we had hoped. It was higher which was definitely a good thing but had not quite doubled. This meant that I would be on the progesterone twice a day every day for the first 12 weeks and I had to have my blood taken every week. It was a long 12 weeks but definitely worth it. The lab girls at the dr office are wonderful!!
Everything seemed to truck right along. At the 12 week mark, the nurse went to hear the heartbeat and couldn't find it. Talk about another freak out moment. I headed to ultrasound and she found him tucked really high just fluttering right along. And trust me - he has been there the WHOLE time! I swear he is kicked back on my ribs!!! HAHA!
At 20 weeks we headed back to ultrasound for measurements and gender reveal if we wanted. We had the tech write it down and we hosted a gender reveal party for our family and close friends. That's when we found out Robert Liam would be joining our family. Noah was so excited. I admit, I was convinced he was a girl because he had been dealing me fits so much!
The 24 week appointment came and it was time for the dreaded sugar test. Yep - failed it the week of Thanksgiving. Trust me, I enjoyed every bite at Thanksgiving dinner because I knew I had a 3 hour test ahead of me and the results of that test may tell me I couldn't eat anything that we enjoyed at Thanksgiving. Needless to say, I passed my test and could carry on.
Christmas came and I started my every 2 week appointments. I could not believe we were already to this point. We had just moved to Corner in December and everything was hectic to say the least. I sat in my appoint on Jan 3rd and told Dr. Kennedy that I had a feeling I would not make it all the way to March 11th. She said that I was measuring a week ahead and he was already head down. Needless to say - I freaked because we had not even put up the crib yet. (We JUST did this weekend. HAHA!) She told me I better get to work. 2 weeks later I was headed to my appointment and cancelled on the way because Birmingham was having a small snowstorm. It was horrible trying to drive and quite honestly, I didn't want to have a wreck and have to go to the hospital in snow and ice. I rescheduled my appointment for the following Monday afternoon.
The weather was cleared the next day and everything was back to normal. Saturday was mom's bday so we headed to Trussville for a bday party for one of Noah's friends then to lunch with Mom and Rinda. We enjoyed dinner with Gigi and GrandDanny before loading back up to head North to Corner.
Sunday was a typical day for us. Church that morning then we grabbed lunch and did our weekly grocery trip. Nap time came and it was wonderful! As it was time to get ready for church, I started having a pain in my back that felt like it was coming through to a spot between my ribs. I don't think I had ever been in so much pain. Seriously! I tried to make it at church but it didn't happen. I started feeling nauseated and light headed. I sat in the room with Keith and called the on call doctor. He told me it was probably a muscle spasm and how I could relieve the pressure. Nothing worked. I told Keith something wasn't right and I felt we needed to head to Brookwood. We called parents on the way. Let me just say - they ALL beat us to the hospital. LOL! Disadvantage for living 45 minutes from hospital! They had a wheelchair waiting when we pulled up and had me registered with the nurse. Advantage to parents beating us to hospital! We weren't there long before the nurse told me I was having contractions and my bp was raised. It wasn't long after that I started throwing up. I cried because Keith and Mom saw me get sick. The nurse came in and became my best friend with the medicine she put in my iv. It was obvious we were not going anywhere that night. The on call Dr came and evaluated. He still thought muscle spasm but said my OB would probably order a gallbladder ultrasound the next day.
I slept off and on pretty much all night - thanks to the wonderful medicine. Poor Keith did not. Dr. Kennedy came in that morning to check on me. She told me the sad news that I couldn't eat or drink anything ALL day and that I would have to go to radiology for the ultrasound. I was upset to find out that my gallbladder has "too many gallstones to count". That can't be good! The nurses all told me that gallbladder surgery can be done while pregnant. That thought freaked me out! Dr. K sent a surgeon in to check on me. He told me that I am too far along and Liam is too high (as he has been the WHOLE time) for them to do anything now. The good news is that my gallbladder is not infected so there is no rush to get it out at this time. Liam can keep cooking. Bad news is that I am on a very limited very strict diet here on out. No fat/lowest fat diet - ie: lots of grilled/baked chicken or fish. No dairy (which is a big killer for me), no creams, cheese, coffee, carbonated drinks, fried foods, etc. As Dr. Littleton said, if it tastes good, I can't eat it.
This also means that Liam is in no danger, he did not cause the gallbladder issues though pregnancy can contribute to inflammation. I was discharged on Tuesday with instructions to rest and recover, a prescription of pain pills in case I get into trouble and to call Dr. Littleton after I deliver to set up surgery to have it removed 2-6 weeks after Liam is born. How lovely is that - 2 recoveries ahead of me. Double time for Keith to be off from his new job. Nice!!
It's been 2 weeks since all of that happened and as of last Tuesday I was already down 5 lbs. I'm trying to find a bright side to this ordeal. The end is not in sight for us - I guess that is a very good thing. Just means momma is miserable. Liam is still has high as he can be but I have not even started the progression part. My bp was raised last week at the dr office but it came down before I left so nothing to worry with right now. We will go as long as we can and won't start talking about induction until 38/39 weeks unless we start having issues. I am 35 weeks today so I still have a little while to go! My belly has gotten much larger and I am having contractions already but nothing consistent. Life must carry on at this point.
Keith started a new job today and Noah started his new school last week. The baby bed and changing table have been set up. Waiting on the bedding to arrive, washing clothes and getting organized is what is going on now. The ladies at our church gave me a tea yesterday and I was more than thrilled with everything. Liam received lots of amazing things and I was so honored. God has brought us to an amazing place at Highpoint. I still feel like I am dreaming that we are here with them. As Keith keeps reminding me - all of this is just another chapter in our book. I'm just anxious for the chapter on Liam's birthday!
~Randi
Monday, December 3, 2012
Life's updates
How terrible of a blogger am I? Oh my goodness. So much has happened that I am not even sure where to begin.
I'll start with the most exciting - Noah is going to be a big brother!! He could not be any more excited!! Robert "Liam" is scheduled to make his appearance in March.
This pregnancy came as a shock but we were excited. There is a story to Liam but I will save that for another blog post. HAHA!! Don't want to turn this post into a book itself.
The next interesting piece of info is that we are moving to Corner. We are so thrilled. We got rid of our house in September and have been living with Gigi and GrandDanny since. We are going to be renting a house from someone at our church so timing works out great. It is a much larger house than we had - has a full basement with a perfect room for an office (photography), a den/playroom and a guest bedroom. There are only 2 bedrooms on the main level but the master is actually too large for us so Liam will be sharing with us for a while.
God has definitely been keeping is eye on us. He's taken some drastic measure to get our attention but we have no doubt that Corner is where we are supposed to be. The only downfall is being further away from our parents. Noah is going to have to change schools which will mean that my mom will not be able to pick him up in the afternoons - for that, I am very sad! We are hoping that she will still be able to keep him on Fridays, even though we will still be paying for 5 days of school. It is very important to me that Nina has her Noah time! My Grandma Dison kept me while my mom worked and I would not trade my memories with Grandma for anything and I want to make sure Noah has similar memories with my mom!
Maggie is not sure what is going on. She has not been to the new house yet but I know she will love it. She has a huge yard that will be fenced in soon and I know there will be lots of smells for her little nose. What she doesn't understand is that her "cousin" lives next door. A 13" beagle named Abby is her new neighbor. Abby is only 4 years old but is much heavier than Maggie and honestly looks much older. But we've heard she is just as lazy as Maggie. I think they will get along well!!
We are looking forward to some great things God has cooking right now. Liam's arrival will be huge for us and tons of excitement is going on at church. Just reminding ourselves that it is totally God's timing and not ours. Unfortunately that is a hard lesson to learn.
This is it for now. I promise to update more often (I really will try - I promise!!).
~Randi
I'll start with the most exciting - Noah is going to be a big brother!! He could not be any more excited!! Robert "Liam" is scheduled to make his appearance in March.
This pregnancy came as a shock but we were excited. There is a story to Liam but I will save that for another blog post. HAHA!! Don't want to turn this post into a book itself.
The next interesting piece of info is that we are moving to Corner. We are so thrilled. We got rid of our house in September and have been living with Gigi and GrandDanny since. We are going to be renting a house from someone at our church so timing works out great. It is a much larger house than we had - has a full basement with a perfect room for an office (photography), a den/playroom and a guest bedroom. There are only 2 bedrooms on the main level but the master is actually too large for us so Liam will be sharing with us for a while.
God has definitely been keeping is eye on us. He's taken some drastic measure to get our attention but we have no doubt that Corner is where we are supposed to be. The only downfall is being further away from our parents. Noah is going to have to change schools which will mean that my mom will not be able to pick him up in the afternoons - for that, I am very sad! We are hoping that she will still be able to keep him on Fridays, even though we will still be paying for 5 days of school. It is very important to me that Nina has her Noah time! My Grandma Dison kept me while my mom worked and I would not trade my memories with Grandma for anything and I want to make sure Noah has similar memories with my mom!
Maggie is not sure what is going on. She has not been to the new house yet but I know she will love it. She has a huge yard that will be fenced in soon and I know there will be lots of smells for her little nose. What she doesn't understand is that her "cousin" lives next door. A 13" beagle named Abby is her new neighbor. Abby is only 4 years old but is much heavier than Maggie and honestly looks much older. But we've heard she is just as lazy as Maggie. I think they will get along well!!
We are looking forward to some great things God has cooking right now. Liam's arrival will be huge for us and tons of excitement is going on at church. Just reminding ourselves that it is totally God's timing and not ours. Unfortunately that is a hard lesson to learn.
This is it for now. I promise to update more often (I really will try - I promise!!).
~Randi
Thursday, May 24, 2012
The Voice of God
Do you ever listen intenally for the voice of God? How does God speak to you?
It took me so long to realize the many ways that God uses to get through to us. Sad to admit, I know, but it is true. God has used so many different ways, people, songs, etc. to get into my thick skull. He has used dreams, scriptures, voices/thoughts in my heart, songs, and I could go on and on. It is such an amazing feeling knowing the full presence of God, listening to his words (often through others) and just feeling his arms wrapped around you. Oh my goodness, love it!!
This morning was one of those mornings. I was on my way to work, just praying and talking to God, asking for him to interveen in a situation. I had turned the radio down to focus on my conversation with God when I realized that Mandisa's "Stronger" was on the radio. I have heard this song many times, sing with it every time but this time my heart opened to hear the words. I know it was from God! It completely spoke along with the words that I was praying.
I'm not going to post the words to the whole song, but I will post the words to the chorus, in case you have not heard it. I highly reccommend going to youtube.com and looking it up. You will not be disappointed and I pray that you will be moved like I was.
"When the waves are taking you under
Hold on just a little bit longer
He knows that this is gonna make you stronger, stronger
The pain ain't gonna last forever
And things can only get better
Believe me
This is gonna make you stronger
Gonna make you stronger, stronger, stronger
Believe me, this is gonna make you ...
Try and do the best you can
Hold on and let Him hold your hand
And go on and fall into the arms of Jesus
Oh, life your head it's gonna end
God's right there
Even when you just can't feel Him
I promise you that He still cares"
~Mandisa
~Randi
It took me so long to realize the many ways that God uses to get through to us. Sad to admit, I know, but it is true. God has used so many different ways, people, songs, etc. to get into my thick skull. He has used dreams, scriptures, voices/thoughts in my heart, songs, and I could go on and on. It is such an amazing feeling knowing the full presence of God, listening to his words (often through others) and just feeling his arms wrapped around you. Oh my goodness, love it!!
This morning was one of those mornings. I was on my way to work, just praying and talking to God, asking for him to interveen in a situation. I had turned the radio down to focus on my conversation with God when I realized that Mandisa's "Stronger" was on the radio. I have heard this song many times, sing with it every time but this time my heart opened to hear the words. I know it was from God! It completely spoke along with the words that I was praying.
I'm not going to post the words to the whole song, but I will post the words to the chorus, in case you have not heard it. I highly reccommend going to youtube.com and looking it up. You will not be disappointed and I pray that you will be moved like I was.
"When the waves are taking you under
Hold on just a little bit longer
He knows that this is gonna make you stronger, stronger
The pain ain't gonna last forever
And things can only get better
Believe me
This is gonna make you stronger
Gonna make you stronger, stronger, stronger
Believe me, this is gonna make you ...
Try and do the best you can
Hold on and let Him hold your hand
And go on and fall into the arms of Jesus
Oh, life your head it's gonna end
God's right there
Even when you just can't feel Him
I promise you that He still cares"
~Mandisa
~Randi
Tuesday, April 24, 2012
Fighting Away the Devil
I feel like all that I have done lately is fight with Satan. Sometimes I feel like he is winning but I will not let him overcome!!
This weekend was "one of those weekends." It was a never ending weekend and for the first time ever, I said, "I am ready for Monday and ready to go back to work!" Oh my goodness. Friday was a long day at work followed by a great evening of crafting with the women at church. Saturday was not so bad either, just long. I photographed a wedding and coverage started at 2:30p and went until 11p. Very l...o...n...g... day. Great wedding though! I get home about 11:30p to find Keith already in bed. That did not sit too well with me but I let it go. I wasn't able to go right to bed because my ears were still ringing from the loud noise of the band. (This is where I really started to feel old! HAHA!) I finally head to bed about 12:15a, just start to dose as Noah decides to come to bed with us. I must break my child of that habit, I am tired of being kicked by a 3 year old who sleeps sideways. Anyway!! We wake up about 5a to the sound of Maggie having a breathing attack. We get her calmed down, back asleep and sure enough she has another attack about 6a. I should have just stayed up at this point.
As we are getting ready for church, Keith tells me that he has a bad headache. Translation = migraine! Just lovely, huh!! We head to church, me driving of course. I have no idea how Keith made it to church without throwing up. Seriously! The drive to church is a long and curvy road. Have I mentioned it's a solid 45 minute drive? I pray the entire drive up, begging for Keith not to be sick. I begin coming up with a game plan in my head, trying to figure out what we will do for Children's Worship with Keith being out. Once we get to church I text messaged all of our parents asking for extra prayers because Keith is at church with a migraine. Let me just tell you about the power of prayer!! We prayed that migraine away! SERIOUSLY!! Several of the parents knew Keith was not feeling well but you could not tell he had been in so much pain.
Sunday services ended up going very well ... until I get a phone call from Dorinda. It turns out that my cousin, Jason, was involved in a motorcycle accident Sunday morning. When motorcycle meets deer, the deer usually wins. Jason was at UAB hospital with 9 broken ribs, a broken wrist, a broken collarbone, a punctured lung, messed up spleen and a brain bleed. My reactions were, ARE YOU KIDDING ME? The freaky thing is Jason had been on my mind since the wedding the night before. We had a Birmingham officer at the ceremony with us and we had a certain situation during the ceremony that I wanted Jason to find out about. I guess that will have to wait! It turns out that Jason will be fine but he has a long recovery ahead of him. He has had surgery to repair his collar bone and he will have to have surgery to repair his wrist. Fortunately the brain bleed has stopped bleeding.
Sunday afternoon comes with more bad news. We learn that a Clay-Chalkville High School senior has decided to end his life. This just roughly 4 weeks away from graduation. Talk about a heavy heart for the family and friends of this guy.
It was at this point that I was ready to give up and go straight to bed. But the power of prayer is amazing. It seems that Keith and I keep getting hit with so many curve balls lately but we just try to take each one as they come at us. Someone at church told me that we must be doing something right for Satan to keep attacking us. I hope that is what it is. We will just keep fighting and fight like we have never fought before.
~Randi
This weekend was "one of those weekends." It was a never ending weekend and for the first time ever, I said, "I am ready for Monday and ready to go back to work!" Oh my goodness. Friday was a long day at work followed by a great evening of crafting with the women at church. Saturday was not so bad either, just long. I photographed a wedding and coverage started at 2:30p and went until 11p. Very l...o...n...g... day. Great wedding though! I get home about 11:30p to find Keith already in bed. That did not sit too well with me but I let it go. I wasn't able to go right to bed because my ears were still ringing from the loud noise of the band. (This is where I really started to feel old! HAHA!) I finally head to bed about 12:15a, just start to dose as Noah decides to come to bed with us. I must break my child of that habit, I am tired of being kicked by a 3 year old who sleeps sideways. Anyway!! We wake up about 5a to the sound of Maggie having a breathing attack. We get her calmed down, back asleep and sure enough she has another attack about 6a. I should have just stayed up at this point.
As we are getting ready for church, Keith tells me that he has a bad headache. Translation = migraine! Just lovely, huh!! We head to church, me driving of course. I have no idea how Keith made it to church without throwing up. Seriously! The drive to church is a long and curvy road. Have I mentioned it's a solid 45 minute drive? I pray the entire drive up, begging for Keith not to be sick. I begin coming up with a game plan in my head, trying to figure out what we will do for Children's Worship with Keith being out. Once we get to church I text messaged all of our parents asking for extra prayers because Keith is at church with a migraine. Let me just tell you about the power of prayer!! We prayed that migraine away! SERIOUSLY!! Several of the parents knew Keith was not feeling well but you could not tell he had been in so much pain.
Sunday services ended up going very well ... until I get a phone call from Dorinda. It turns out that my cousin, Jason, was involved in a motorcycle accident Sunday morning. When motorcycle meets deer, the deer usually wins. Jason was at UAB hospital with 9 broken ribs, a broken wrist, a broken collarbone, a punctured lung, messed up spleen and a brain bleed. My reactions were, ARE YOU KIDDING ME? The freaky thing is Jason had been on my mind since the wedding the night before. We had a Birmingham officer at the ceremony with us and we had a certain situation during the ceremony that I wanted Jason to find out about. I guess that will have to wait! It turns out that Jason will be fine but he has a long recovery ahead of him. He has had surgery to repair his collar bone and he will have to have surgery to repair his wrist. Fortunately the brain bleed has stopped bleeding.
Sunday afternoon comes with more bad news. We learn that a Clay-Chalkville High School senior has decided to end his life. This just roughly 4 weeks away from graduation. Talk about a heavy heart for the family and friends of this guy.
It was at this point that I was ready to give up and go straight to bed. But the power of prayer is amazing. It seems that Keith and I keep getting hit with so many curve balls lately but we just try to take each one as they come at us. Someone at church told me that we must be doing something right for Satan to keep attacking us. I hope that is what it is. We will just keep fighting and fight like we have never fought before.
~Randi
Saturday, March 31, 2012
From the Couch to a 5K
Today is what I hope to be the beginning of a new beginning for Keith and me. We accomplished our very first 5k. If you don’t know, that is 3.2 miles. We did not run the entire thing; in fact, we did not even run half of it. But you know that is ok. We accomplished our goal either way. (1) We completed the race (2) We did not come in last!! We did a run walk combination but running a portion and then walking. We alternated the entire race. I don’t know how much we actually ran but it is more then I expected to be able to run.
In my adult years weight has never been a friend of mine. I am continuously up and down. I loose a couple of pounds to only gain double what I lost. I am the largest that I have ever been. I am not about to tell you what I weigh, haha! Though I am very tall, I can fortunately hide my weight very well. But I am still not about to give up that number. Maybe I will give it to you once I get fit.
This race is just the beginning for Keith and I. I am very excited to see what we do from here. We are determined to continue training and we look forward to more 5ks. We recently had a friend suffer from a massive heart attack at a young age and he lost his battle. His death has been an eye opener for both of us. We have realized that we have Noah to live for and we need to live like we do. We have changed our eating habits, included more veggies in our meals (which is huge for Keith!!) and we have cut drastically on our carbs, pastas and breads. Keith is a very picky eater and does not like vegetables or anything green. He is definitely a meat and bread kind of guy. I love vegetables but have often found myself giving them up to cook what he would eat. (Enter weight control issue!!)
I have recently been diagnosed with hypothyroidism. I know, sounds big, right? Well, in fact, it could be. It means that my thyroid is not producing correctly. It is under active. Basically, it means I feel tired all of the time and more or less, could have issues loosing weight. I take medicine for it every day and probably will for the rest of my life. (Oh it makes me feel so old!) But I am determined to win this battle and hopefully be able to come off of my medicine. I also have heredity high cholesterol (Thanks, Dad!!) It was in the 200’s in my 20’s. Yeah, I know!! Getting my rear in gear will hopefully help some future heart issues. I kind of like my heart beating and would like to keep it that way!
Keith has already lost a little over 10 pounds in our little weight loss journey and I have lost but not as significantly. Running this 5k this morning is definitely a good start for us.
For documentation purposes, I am posting a picture of us from this morning at Sloss Furnace after our race. (Excuse the horrible looks!!) So, thank you, Rumpshaker 5k. We look forward to more races in the future!!
In my adult years weight has never been a friend of mine. I am continuously up and down. I loose a couple of pounds to only gain double what I lost. I am the largest that I have ever been. I am not about to tell you what I weigh, haha! Though I am very tall, I can fortunately hide my weight very well. But I am still not about to give up that number. Maybe I will give it to you once I get fit.
This race is just the beginning for Keith and I. I am very excited to see what we do from here. We are determined to continue training and we look forward to more 5ks. We recently had a friend suffer from a massive heart attack at a young age and he lost his battle. His death has been an eye opener for both of us. We have realized that we have Noah to live for and we need to live like we do. We have changed our eating habits, included more veggies in our meals (which is huge for Keith!!) and we have cut drastically on our carbs, pastas and breads. Keith is a very picky eater and does not like vegetables or anything green. He is definitely a meat and bread kind of guy. I love vegetables but have often found myself giving them up to cook what he would eat. (Enter weight control issue!!)
I have recently been diagnosed with hypothyroidism. I know, sounds big, right? Well, in fact, it could be. It means that my thyroid is not producing correctly. It is under active. Basically, it means I feel tired all of the time and more or less, could have issues loosing weight. I take medicine for it every day and probably will for the rest of my life. (Oh it makes me feel so old!) But I am determined to win this battle and hopefully be able to come off of my medicine. I also have heredity high cholesterol (Thanks, Dad!!) It was in the 200’s in my 20’s. Yeah, I know!! Getting my rear in gear will hopefully help some future heart issues. I kind of like my heart beating and would like to keep it that way!
Keith has already lost a little over 10 pounds in our little weight loss journey and I have lost but not as significantly. Running this 5k this morning is definitely a good start for us.
For documentation purposes, I am posting a picture of us from this morning at Sloss Furnace after our race. (Excuse the horrible looks!!) So, thank you, Rumpshaker 5k. We look forward to more races in the future!!
~Randi
Tuesday, March 27, 2012
God, are you serious? Me?
Do you ever feel like God is asking something of you but you are not quite sure what to make of it? Sure, we all go through this at some point in our lives. That is part of God’s plan. Will we follow through? Will we run and ignore? How will we follow through?
I have just returned home from an amazing weekend in Pigeon Forge, Tennessee with the wonderful ladies of Mt. Calvary Baptist Church. If you don’t know, my dad is the pastor of this church. Each year their ladies attend a women’s conference. I have had the privilege of going with them for the last 3 trips, this one included. We decided that this was their 6th year to go. Let me tell you, it is one weekend every year that I thoroughly look forward too. It is a weekend with very Godly women attending a well known conference with well known speakers. It is weekend that I cannot come home from and not feel the blessing of Christ. I love coming home feeling refreshed. This was a weekend I definitely needed after the year that we have had. (Yes, our neighborhood is still in turmoil and let’s just say that I do not come home feeling refreshed in the afternoons. But that is a whole other post for another day!!)
While sitting and listening to 3 very talented speakers this weekend, I felt a tug on my heart. Yes, it was one of those God tugs. The tug is something that I have wanted to do but not sure how to do it. The thoughts that I kept having were “yes, this is something I want to do and have wanted to do. But me?” I thought about this “thought” all the way home from Tennessee just trying to tell myself that it is nothing I would be able to do. There is no way I am equipped for that job. In a way, I was telling God no. How dare I? Shouldn’t I know better than that by now?
I came home, so excited to see my family. I came home to Noah waving at me through the window. I rush over to him and pick him up, expecting a hug and he says “NINA!!” Yes, of course, he was excited to see my mom! LOL. We went through our evening routine, put Noah to bed and I soon followed. I typically lie in bed and watch tv to fall asleep but not last night. I decided to read from a little devotion book that Mrs. Tiny gave us in a goody bag for our trip. It is something she does each year and we always look forward to. The devotion book is called “God’s Promises to a Woman’s Heart.” (How fitting, huh?) Nanny had opened her goody bag on the way to Tennessee and read the first devotion to Mom and me as we traveled. I decided to skim back over it last night as I breezed through to day 2. But the verse on day 1 caught my heart. It says:
“My God will meet all your needs according to his glorious riches in Christ Jesus.”
Philippians 4:19.
No lie, that’s really the verse. Talk about a slap in the face. Day 2 (yes, it gets even better) says:
“I will bless her with abundant provisions; her poor will I satisfy with food.”
Psalms 132:15.
Not only did I try to tell God no yesterday because I did not feel equipped to handle the task that he is giving me but he turned right back to me and said “Yes, Randi, YOU can do this. I will meet your needs and bless you with abundant provisions.” So, with that being said, I am not sure what God has up his sleeves, but I am excited to see where he takes me. I will follow his guidance and just trust. Please pray for me that I will be open to listening to the word of Christ.
~Randi
Monday, January 30, 2012
Living Life in the Path of the Storm
Monday, January 23, 2012 will be a day that our family will never forget. It is the first time that we have ever been significantly impacted by a natural disaster. Weather reports on January 22nd called for strong storms overnight into Monday morning. Fortunately we were very weather aware, as you must be in Alabama. I will say that we are very fortunate and very blessed by God to be standing here today. His loving arms wrapped safety around us and we will forever be in awe.
About 3 am Monday morning, our trusty little weather radio sounded off to let us know of a tornado warning in Jefferson County. We woke up and turned on the weather to see exactly where this storm was headed. It is not unusual to have storms with threats of tornadoes. More often the storm is in the clouds waiting to drop at any moment. We watched this storm come through Oak Grove, which has been destructed for the 2nd time in about 15 years. We waited to see if James Spann would include downtown Birmingham in the main threat, once he did, it was time to activate our weather plan. We dressed and headed down stairs. I cleaned out the closet, gathered Noah's helmet, made sure we knew where Maggie's leash was and gathered our thoughts on what to do next. I called Dorinda to make sure they were awake because the storm had turned our direction. Before I hung up the phone, I mentioned that we may come over to her house. She replied with "OK" but it was the type of "OK" that was like "fine, but whatever." We do laugh about it now that we know what happened. Keith told me to go ahead and wake Noah up and get him ready. Let me just say that my baby boy must have been dreaming good because he said "not yet, momma.". I felt horrible for having to wake him. I told Keith that I had a really nervous feeling and felt that we needed to go to Dorinda's. That was all he needed -- off we went. I packed a bag of every diaper and wipe that we had. I included a couple of juice boxes, gummies (because our world revolves around gummies!!) and breakfast bars. I also included my most prized possession, BO! We quickly headed out the door and down the street.
I remember looking at neighbor's houses as we were leaving to see who was awake. Trust me, next time I leave running from a storm, I will lay on the horn and try to wake everyone up!! I never thought that would be the last time I would see our neighborhood the way it was. I called Dorinda at 3:53 to tell her we were on our way. Jennifer called to make sure we were watching. Jennifer was our listening ear, thank goodness, when the power went out. We made it to Rinda's and headed down to the basement. Jamie and Dorinda were working to get his parents downstairs when the storm hit. We were in the basement, I had Noah AND Jack, Keith had Maggie. Dorinda was opening the garage door and Jamie was walking in the hall when both the front and back doors slammed open and the most horrible noise came from outside. Every kind of dirt and dust from Dorinda's basement began to swirl in where we were. Jennifer called to tell us that the tv reported that the storm was over Walmart in Trussville when in fact it had just blown over us.
We realized that things had settled down and we decided to head back home. Dorinda and Jamie's house was thankfully undamaged, thus leaving us unaware of what really had happened. Driving through Dorinda and Jamie's neighborhood was so spooky. There were tree limbs and pieces all over the street. We watched closely to make sure we did not travel over any power lines. As we turned on Old Springville Road, the road was clear again but the closer we got to Georgebrook, tree limbs began to appear again. We came to a spot in the road where there was a road block. We were less than 2 or 3 blocks from our neighborhood when we realized we could not go any further. It was so dark outside that we could not see the destruction. I looked back at my phone to realize I called Dorinda at 4:20 to tell her that we could not get back home because of trees and/or power lines. We were not sure at the moment. We headed to Keith's parents house where we knew we would wait until the sun came up to head back home.
It wasn't long of watching the news that we discovered what would forever change our lives. Georgebrook had been hit by a tornado. I realized I had our neighbor's phone number and I just had to know. At 4:44 am, Candi told me that our house was fine but the entire corner and first street of our neighborhood were completely gone. I fell to my knees and wept. Noah came to me to comfort me. I remember telling him "our house is fine baby. We have a home. But our friends do not."
We attempted at trip home at 8 am but police had the road closed due to a gas leak. When we finally made it at 11 am, this is what we saw:
We are so very fortunate that our home only suffered some shingle damage (which has already been repaired) and some loose siding. Nothing more that we know of.
I've not been able to grasp my feelings from that day. Thankful, fortunate - absolutely. But I also have a sense of guilt - guilt that my house is fine when so many others are not. The scary thing is 6 houses down from us has major damage, 9 down is completely destroyed. Why is our house not more damaged? How is it even possible.
God gave me the title of my blog Thursday when I was getting ready for work. I was dreading leaving for work because it was our first day back home and I was not looking forward to my "new view" when I left for work. God gave me "Living Life in the Path of the Storm". Keith and I have been in the path of many storms in our marriage. They've not been physical storms, until now. God gives us storms each and every day of our lives but it is up to us how we tackle the storms. I'm not sure what all God has planned with this title, but I keep praying for his wisdom and his words through our stories.
I'm going to close my blog post with a verse God gave me. It comes from Isaiah, chapter 43:
"But now, this is what the Lord says - he who created you, O Jacob, he who formed you, O Israel: 'Fear not, for I have redeemed you; I have summoned you by name; you are mine. When you pass through the waters, I will be with you; and when you pass through the rivers, they will not sweep over you. When you walk through the fire, you will not be burned; the flames will not set you ablaze. For I am the Lord, your God, the Holy One of Israel, your Savior;' "
~Randi
About 3 am Monday morning, our trusty little weather radio sounded off to let us know of a tornado warning in Jefferson County. We woke up and turned on the weather to see exactly where this storm was headed. It is not unusual to have storms with threats of tornadoes. More often the storm is in the clouds waiting to drop at any moment. We watched this storm come through Oak Grove, which has been destructed for the 2nd time in about 15 years. We waited to see if James Spann would include downtown Birmingham in the main threat, once he did, it was time to activate our weather plan. We dressed and headed down stairs. I cleaned out the closet, gathered Noah's helmet, made sure we knew where Maggie's leash was and gathered our thoughts on what to do next. I called Dorinda to make sure they were awake because the storm had turned our direction. Before I hung up the phone, I mentioned that we may come over to her house. She replied with "OK" but it was the type of "OK" that was like "fine, but whatever." We do laugh about it now that we know what happened. Keith told me to go ahead and wake Noah up and get him ready. Let me just say that my baby boy must have been dreaming good because he said "not yet, momma.". I felt horrible for having to wake him. I told Keith that I had a really nervous feeling and felt that we needed to go to Dorinda's. That was all he needed -- off we went. I packed a bag of every diaper and wipe that we had. I included a couple of juice boxes, gummies (because our world revolves around gummies!!) and breakfast bars. I also included my most prized possession, BO! We quickly headed out the door and down the street.
I remember looking at neighbor's houses as we were leaving to see who was awake. Trust me, next time I leave running from a storm, I will lay on the horn and try to wake everyone up!! I never thought that would be the last time I would see our neighborhood the way it was. I called Dorinda at 3:53 to tell her we were on our way. Jennifer called to make sure we were watching. Jennifer was our listening ear, thank goodness, when the power went out. We made it to Rinda's and headed down to the basement. Jamie and Dorinda were working to get his parents downstairs when the storm hit. We were in the basement, I had Noah AND Jack, Keith had Maggie. Dorinda was opening the garage door and Jamie was walking in the hall when both the front and back doors slammed open and the most horrible noise came from outside. Every kind of dirt and dust from Dorinda's basement began to swirl in where we were. Jennifer called to tell us that the tv reported that the storm was over Walmart in Trussville when in fact it had just blown over us.
We realized that things had settled down and we decided to head back home. Dorinda and Jamie's house was thankfully undamaged, thus leaving us unaware of what really had happened. Driving through Dorinda and Jamie's neighborhood was so spooky. There were tree limbs and pieces all over the street. We watched closely to make sure we did not travel over any power lines. As we turned on Old Springville Road, the road was clear again but the closer we got to Georgebrook, tree limbs began to appear again. We came to a spot in the road where there was a road block. We were less than 2 or 3 blocks from our neighborhood when we realized we could not go any further. It was so dark outside that we could not see the destruction. I looked back at my phone to realize I called Dorinda at 4:20 to tell her that we could not get back home because of trees and/or power lines. We were not sure at the moment. We headed to Keith's parents house where we knew we would wait until the sun came up to head back home.
It wasn't long of watching the news that we discovered what would forever change our lives. Georgebrook had been hit by a tornado. I realized I had our neighbor's phone number and I just had to know. At 4:44 am, Candi told me that our house was fine but the entire corner and first street of our neighborhood were completely gone. I fell to my knees and wept. Noah came to me to comfort me. I remember telling him "our house is fine baby. We have a home. But our friends do not."
We attempted at trip home at 8 am but police had the road closed due to a gas leak. When we finally made it at 11 am, this is what we saw:
The front left corner of our neighborhood
Our beautiful neighborhood entrance sign
I think back and I am so thankful that we left. And I am so thankful that we were not able to get back to our neighborhood at 4 am. I can not imagine the devastation we would have felt finding the neighborhood like this.
Here are a couple of other images from Monday:
We are so very fortunate that our home only suffered some shingle damage (which has already been repaired) and some loose siding. Nothing more that we know of.
I've not been able to grasp my feelings from that day. Thankful, fortunate - absolutely. But I also have a sense of guilt - guilt that my house is fine when so many others are not. The scary thing is 6 houses down from us has major damage, 9 down is completely destroyed. Why is our house not more damaged? How is it even possible.
God gave me the title of my blog Thursday when I was getting ready for work. I was dreading leaving for work because it was our first day back home and I was not looking forward to my "new view" when I left for work. God gave me "Living Life in the Path of the Storm". Keith and I have been in the path of many storms in our marriage. They've not been physical storms, until now. God gives us storms each and every day of our lives but it is up to us how we tackle the storms. I'm not sure what all God has planned with this title, but I keep praying for his wisdom and his words through our stories.
I'm going to close my blog post with a verse God gave me. It comes from Isaiah, chapter 43:
"But now, this is what the Lord says - he who created you, O Jacob, he who formed you, O Israel: 'Fear not, for I have redeemed you; I have summoned you by name; you are mine. When you pass through the waters, I will be with you; and when you pass through the rivers, they will not sweep over you. When you walk through the fire, you will not be burned; the flames will not set you ablaze. For I am the Lord, your God, the Holy One of Israel, your Savior;' "
~Randi
Tuesday, January 3, 2012
God's Calling - Using Fun Source
Who knew that after many months of wondering, worrying, praying, being discouraged, life would be changed with just a simple phone call - at work! Yes, I know that many lives are changed by one single phone call, but this is not the type of situation where that should/could be. Keith and I (and our family and friends) have prayed for months on end for the perfect ministry job to open for Keith. Seriously, the last year and a half have been filled with website researching, resume sending, emailing churches, receiving emails from churches looking for the job. Never thought that prayer would be answered by me going to my job and answering my phone.
It was a typical Friday in the Fun Source office - we were busy gearing up for Halloween, our busiest time of the year. I answer the phone (which there is a 50/50 chance of me answering the phone!) and proceed to start talking about items that are available for a very popular fall festival date. After talking through the available products, we get to the part of needing the information. The gentlemen tells me that the name of the church is HighPoint Community Church. I ask what denomination the church is (it's in my nature, just curious!). He tells me that they are Baptist, a member of the North Jefferson Baptist Association but they have Community in the name so not to "stereotype" the church. I explain that I completely understand what he means because my mom works at the Birmingham Baptist Association, my dad pastors a small bio-vo church in Tarrant AND that my husband has accepted a call to the ministry, works at a local church and is looking for a children minister position at a church. His next words were .... "SHUT UP!" I instantly freeze, thinking a thousand things in that 2 seconds and then I say "Why? Are you guys looking for someone?" His answer, "Yes, we are!" 45 minutes later, I find out the brief history of HighPoint, find out that I am talking to the Senior Pastor of the church, and I have all of Joey's contact information with instruction to have Keith email him his resume. Let's just say that I was so floored that I'm not sure how I finished his order. Was this for real? Seriously?? After the phone call, I walk to the restroom, shut the door behind me, kind of fell back into the door, closed my eyes and I say "Thank you, Lord!" At THAT moment, God told me "See, I told you to be patient, my child! Here is your opportunity!" I instantly felt relief that THIS is where God would have Keith to serve.
2 months later, Keith has accepted the position as Children Minister at HighPoint Community Church and we were officially announced this past Sunday! We could not be more thrilled and honored to be a part of the HighPoint family. Everyone we have met have been extremely nice and helpful and so welcoming. We went for a visit a few weeks after the initial phone call and instantly felt like we were at home.
I will follow up by saying God has had his hands in this for a VERY long time. I'll give you a brief history ... my first wedding ever to actually be the "wedding planner" was for NBC 13's "NBC Throws a Wedding." The wedding took place December 1, 2006. Joey, the senior pastor, was the minister for that wedding. We had no idea after Keith emailed his resume to Joey. Joey forwarded it to the staff and Matt, the Youth Minister and Brother of the Bride, recognized me from Keith's picture on his resume. I have not seen the bride and groom from the wedding SINCE their wedding - literally. Ran into them in Trussville in August (almost 5 years later) and Matt recognized me from that night! How crazy is that??? Talk about 5 years in the making - long before Keith accepted his call to the ministry!!
HighPoint is located in Corner, Alabama which is about 30 minutes north of downtown Birmingham. Right now the position is a part time position with hopes/plans of being a full time position soon. The church is a church plant and is very rapidly growing. We could not be any happier!!
It was such an honor to have our families be with us this past Sunday when we were announced!
We look forward to many years of service at HighPoint and look forward to relocating our family (at the right time) to the Corner area!!! :-)
In HIS Service, In HIS Time,
Randi, Keith, Noah and Maggie
It was a typical Friday in the Fun Source office - we were busy gearing up for Halloween, our busiest time of the year. I answer the phone (which there is a 50/50 chance of me answering the phone!) and proceed to start talking about items that are available for a very popular fall festival date. After talking through the available products, we get to the part of needing the information. The gentlemen tells me that the name of the church is HighPoint Community Church. I ask what denomination the church is (it's in my nature, just curious!). He tells me that they are Baptist, a member of the North Jefferson Baptist Association but they have Community in the name so not to "stereotype" the church. I explain that I completely understand what he means because my mom works at the Birmingham Baptist Association, my dad pastors a small bio-vo church in Tarrant AND that my husband has accepted a call to the ministry, works at a local church and is looking for a children minister position at a church. His next words were .... "SHUT UP!" I instantly freeze, thinking a thousand things in that 2 seconds and then I say "Why? Are you guys looking for someone?" His answer, "Yes, we are!" 45 minutes later, I find out the brief history of HighPoint, find out that I am talking to the Senior Pastor of the church, and I have all of Joey's contact information with instruction to have Keith email him his resume. Let's just say that I was so floored that I'm not sure how I finished his order. Was this for real? Seriously?? After the phone call, I walk to the restroom, shut the door behind me, kind of fell back into the door, closed my eyes and I say "Thank you, Lord!" At THAT moment, God told me "See, I told you to be patient, my child! Here is your opportunity!" I instantly felt relief that THIS is where God would have Keith to serve.
2 months later, Keith has accepted the position as Children Minister at HighPoint Community Church and we were officially announced this past Sunday! We could not be more thrilled and honored to be a part of the HighPoint family. Everyone we have met have been extremely nice and helpful and so welcoming. We went for a visit a few weeks after the initial phone call and instantly felt like we were at home.
I will follow up by saying God has had his hands in this for a VERY long time. I'll give you a brief history ... my first wedding ever to actually be the "wedding planner" was for NBC 13's "NBC Throws a Wedding." The wedding took place December 1, 2006. Joey, the senior pastor, was the minister for that wedding. We had no idea after Keith emailed his resume to Joey. Joey forwarded it to the staff and Matt, the Youth Minister and Brother of the Bride, recognized me from Keith's picture on his resume. I have not seen the bride and groom from the wedding SINCE their wedding - literally. Ran into them in Trussville in August (almost 5 years later) and Matt recognized me from that night! How crazy is that??? Talk about 5 years in the making - long before Keith accepted his call to the ministry!!
HighPoint is located in Corner, Alabama which is about 30 minutes north of downtown Birmingham. Right now the position is a part time position with hopes/plans of being a full time position soon. The church is a church plant and is very rapidly growing. We could not be any happier!!
It was such an honor to have our families be with us this past Sunday when we were announced!
We look forward to many years of service at HighPoint and look forward to relocating our family (at the right time) to the Corner area!!! :-)
In HIS Service, In HIS Time,
Randi, Keith, Noah and Maggie
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